TEMPLE CITY - The $20.7 million Rosemead Boulevard renovation project will break ground Thursday, prompting disruptions for up to 18 months as the thoroughfare begins a transformation.

The work will result in tough parking restrictions, lane closures, distractions and limited water service disruptions, officials said.

"As with any renovation project whether it's your kitchen or your house or this project, there's obviously going to be some disruptions and some challenges," Councilman Carl Blum told residents last week. "We hope to be able to minimize those inconveniences and disruptions to you - that's both to the residential and business community."

No parking will be allowed on the city's stretch of Rosemead Boulevard for the duration of the project to help keep traffic moving, said Jack Togneri, general superintendent of Los Angeles Engineering, the project's contractor. Violators will be towed, he said.

During construction Las Tunas Drive near Rosemead Boulevard will be closed at least once and possibly twice for a short time, Togneri said.

Due to construction, residents and business owners will not be able to put trash cans on the boulevard and will have to leave them behind the curb, he said.

A few water lines and fire hydrants will have to be replaced and moved, and in instances where there will be a disruption in water service, residents will be notified, Togneri said.

Construction will not be done in front of major shopping areas during the holiday season. Night work from 9 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. will be done in major shopping areas to limit disruption, he said.

"The speed of the project, it's crazy fast, and to try to keep up with that and minimize inconvenience for people is very difficult," Togneri said.

All road closures, when conducted, will be brief. Driveway access may be restricted in some cases but affected home owners and businesses will be notified in advance, he said.

Left turn pockets will be reduced at Las Tunas Drive and possibly Broadway.

Traffic signals at five Rosemead Boulevard intersections will also be replaced during the day and within eight hours, officials said.

Temple City businessman Jerry Jambazian, who has a business on Las Tunas, said he was looking forward to the project's completion.

"It's going to be hard, especially for residents" who live on Rosemead, particularly those who have to park on side streets and carry their groceries to their home, he said.

"It's terrible, but that's what you have to do to ensure progress," he said.

Temple City resident Linda Miller, who lives on Rosemead Boulevard, said she wasn't thrilled about the construction, or about having bike lanes in front of her home, though she knows the thoroughfare needs improvements.

More information can be found at the project website at www.rosemeadblvd.com. Residents can also sign up for project alerts via Nixle by texting ROSEMEAD to 888777 or tune into a new tri-lingual AM 1690 radio station for project updates starting next week.

The project is the largest done in the city in recent years, Mayor Vince Yu said.